rear axle nut torque

I've taken a good number of complete '35 to '40 Ford banjo rears apart to either salvage their parts or to rebuild them, and in most all cases the rear axle nuts were not torqued properly with respect to the specifications given here of 200 to 220 ft pds. This was evident by the obvious wear and tear on the axel and drum/hub tapers, keys, keyways, thread damage on axel and axel nuts, etc., etc.
It seems like back in the day and even now, many folks did not, and still don't torque these axel nuts correctly. Ain't no wounder we've heard so many horror stories over the years about rear axel failures on these early Fords!!
In other words......make damn sure your nuts are always torqued correctly, including your axel nuts!!
 
JM 35 Sedan said:
In other words......make damn sure your nuts are always torqued correctly, including your axel nuts!!
Click to expand...

And if you need too . . . go BUY a bigger torque wrench - or borrow one. I have about a 36" Mac Tools torque wrench - bought it specifically so I could handle torque loads like this.

My old trusty Craftsman 1/2 inch "torque needle" wrench is nowhere big enough for this type of work . . . and I know better than guessing what the torque value MIGHT be.
 
Or buy/make a torque wrench extension; you'll have to do a little math every time you use it, but it's a lot cheaper than another torque wrench.
 
For what its worth, I just use a 150lb torque wrench and go to that then get my 2 1/2 foot breaker bar and go to the net castleation.. I dont believe I could go further than. All must be clean on the taper and inside the drum and fit well, watch the wheel bearing grease when putting it on .
Ive just taken my drums off and it wasn't too hard with a proper puller and some tapping with a rubber mallet. Nothing had moved from years of daily heavy driving , the keys perfect.
 
Here's another two cents worth...

How tight? Well, if it's not enough you will suffer.

When I disassembled my 35 Fordor prior to a 2k mile road trip last summer for a "simple" wheel bearing service I found the driver side key sheared in half. That explained nicely why the nut came off so easily. I'm sure glad I thought a bearing grease was a good idea! It took me about a day to get back on track for the road trip, but I've still gotta tear that rear apart again this spring.

I like driving for a hundred or so miles and test if they will go another castle cutout. When they won't move any more, you're done.

They are about 3x tighter than any other fastener on the vehicle. Upwards of 200 ft./lb. is in the right zone.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top